The Apocalypse
by Angela Wong
Summary: The Evil Lord lay low,gathering numbers and growing in power.People and creatures began choosing sides,most went into hiding...but some choose to fight for their sides.The War concerning the fate of the Earth started.Will the Light succeed to bring down t
1. Author's Notes

Author¡¦s note

Hello to everyone who stop by!

As I am new to writing fanfiction, I can promise nothing except that I¡¦ll try my best to write this story. Anyway, I¡¦m sure that you will enjoy this one, IF you like to read stories about prophesies and wars, with a pinch of romance sprinkled on it¡Ktrust me, because my friends say that my ideas are always brilliant. In addition, I got inspiration from The Lord of the Rings, The Dark Materials, The Vampire Chronicles, and Clamp X, the only and favorite Japanese manga that I¡¦ve ever read. So one more thing I can promise is that you will love my fic if you have read the above books¡K

Second thing: the disclaimer. I¡¦m not going to repeat writing the disclaimer every time, so I think I¡¦m going to say it here¡Xthey don¡¦t belong to me, and never will, though I really want to be the one to create them¡K

Last thing. I did not have any ideas basing on the pairing yet, so if you have any suggestions, email me. (They don¡¦t need to be particularly about pairings, any ideas will do.) Also, I love to make friends, so feel free to email me.

THIS STORY IS FOR MIGUEL, WHO STAYS MY MOST SUPPORTIVE AND CARING FRIEND.(Miguel, if you see this, gimme a * , okay?)

Enough with my ramblings. Enjoy the story, guys! 


	2. Prolouge

Hey, thanks for stopping by. By the way, this is my first fanfic. I will try my best, but English is not my best subject, so please simply ignore my grammatical mistakes and concentrate on the plot instead. Email me at AngelaWong844@hotmail.com if you have any ideas or you just want to make friends with me.

Prologue

¡§You called for me, my Lord?¡¨

¡§I did, indeed.¡¨ A voice said. The voice was melodic and enchantingly deep too.

¡§Is there anything that I can assist of?¡¨

¡§Malfoy.¡¨

¡§Malfoy? B-but¡K did he do something wrong again, my Lord? If that¡¦s so, I do apologize¡K I¡¦ll go and punish him now¡X¡§

¡§No, Voldemort, no. I would like to discuss about his son.¡¨

¡§Oh, my Lord, you mean Draco Lucifer Malfoy?¡¨ Voldemort provided.¡¨ Don¡¦t worry, Master, he is being trained now, and as soon as he leaves Hogwarts, he will be made into one of my most powerful Death Eaters¡X¡§

¡§Voldemort, ¡§the beautiful voice cut in. ¡§You got the wrong idea.¡¨

¡§Did I¡K¡¨

¡§Alright. Now listen to me carefully. Young Malfoy will not be made into a Death Eater. ¡§

¡§Why, my Lord?¡¨

¡§Are you aware that Draco Malfoy is a very powerful wizard, am I right?¡¨

¡§Yes, Master, and he is very keen to provide his service as a Death Eater.¡¨

¡§I have something else in stored for him.¡¨

¡§Uh, what is it exactly, my Lord?¡¨

¡§The million ¡Vdollar question¡K but I am not going to tell you, yet.¡¨

¡§Yes, my Lord.¡¨

¡§And there is another thing too, Voldemort. I believe that there is this girl called Hermione Laetitia Granger in Hogwarts, am I right?¡¨

¡§Yes, she is a mudblood Gryffindor.¡¨

¡§Voldemort, she is not a muggle.¡¨

¡§Master, she lives in a muggle family!¡¨

¡§Do you know which family?¡¨

¡§Uh, no. I¡¦m sorry that I¡¦m not really interested in that girl, except for the fact that she is the smartest girl¡K she¡¦s even better than me, and she beats Draco Malfoy at everything, except Quidditch.¡¨

¡§That girl is the heiress to the Irish throne, Voldemort.¡¨

¡§She is part of the Irish Royalties? Then¡K she is a pureblood!¡¨

¡§Certainly she is. The Irish Royalties were the earliest wizards that appeared after the time of the Domins.¡¨ 

¡§What about the girl, my Lord?¡¨

¡§Bring me her parents¡Xalive, before the school term starts again, understand?¡¨

¡§Yes, Master, my Death Eaters will be more than happy to provide their services.¡¨

¡§Good. Voldemort, come here.¡¨ He did so, and he stopped right before the person who was sat in a sofa facing the fireplace. The person traced one finger along Voldemort¡¦s jawline.

¡§What¡¦s the use of this!? Why do you hide such a handsome face behind such an ugly mask?¡¨ the hand reached beneath Voldemort¡¦s throat and yanked. 

Voldemort¡¦s skin fell, or rather, a white mask as thin as a piece of skin fell off and was thrown into the fire.

¡§Ummm¡K it¡¦s because I was afraid that I would be spotted again¡K ¡§

¡§Don¡¦t worry. After all those years, nobody is going to recognize you anyway, and you really look much better like this.¡¨

¡§Thank you, Master.¡¨

¡§Tonight you will go Knockturn Alley and enjoy yourself. You have my permission to start the mission tomorrow. Now go.¡¨

Voldemort bowed and backed out of the room. 

¡§So Torelli, what do you think of that?¡¨ the person in the sofa hissed in Parseltougne.

A giant snake with dark green and silver skin slithered towards him and rested its head on its master¡¦s laps affectionately, hissing as it did so.

¡§Ahhh¡K you are very lonely, aren¡¦t you. Don¡¦t worry; I¡¦ll arrange to have Naginni sent here tomorrow. I know you miss her¡K and she is a beauty¡K¡¨

So what do you think? Review me and let me know. Thanx!

Note: Can anybody guess who Voldie¡¦s master is? Email me if you want to guess.

(Hint: It was mentioned in the Harry Potter books!) 


	3. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It would be their seventh year in Hogwarts in the coming September, and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was rising in power. Oh, the presses weren¡¦t saying anything about it, but ask any high rank wizard or witch and they¡¦ll tell you¡Xthe Dark Times are coming. 

Today was the twentieth of August, and Harry was waiting at the entrance of Gringott¡¦s for his friends. The Weasley family is coming, as well as Hermione and her parents. 

¡§Harry! Harry! There he is, Mum!¡¨

Harry grinned. There¡¦s no mistaking the Weasley family. Every Weasley had red hair and a lot of freckles, and Ron was the tallest of them all, despite being the youngest son.

Harry was nearly drowned when he was engulfed by the whole Weasley family, as all of them tried to hug him at the same time.

¡§Hey, watch it, you flipper foot!¡¨ Ginny yelled as he stumbled and stepped on her foot accidentally. Harry greeted the Weasleys and mocked a little bow at Arthur Weasley, who was now Minister of Magic. 

¡§Is Hermie here yet?¡¨ Ron asked.

¡§Nah can¡¦t see her yet. She owled me from Japan to say that they¡¦re coming back today. So she and her parents are able to come today.¡¨ Harry squinted at the crowd.

¡§Don¡¦t worry.¡¨ Fred assured him. She cannot miss eight redheads with freckles standing together with that black patch of grass.¡¨

Hermione saw them before they did and when they spotted her; she was already running towards them, with her hair flying out behind her.

Harry and the Weasleys stared. Running towards them wasn¡¦t Hermione, or was she? The girl was very attractive with long, wavy, black-brown hair. She was wearing a tight T-shirt, tight jeans and sneakers.

Hermione ran closer and saw them staring at her with their jaws nearly falling onto the ground. She smiled. They must have noticed my hair. little as she knew, the boys were thinking much, much more than her hair. She practically flew to Harry and Ron and tried to wrap them in a hug, but she was too tiny compared to her friends. The only thing she could do is to slam into them and planted a peck on each of the boys¡¦ faces.

¡§Hermione?¡¨ Harry blinked as if he was coming out of a trance. ¡§Is that you?¡¨

¡§Hermie?¡¨ Ron peered into her eyes. ¡§It¡¦s really you, isn¡¦t it?¡¨

¡§Of course it¡¦s me, you morons!¡¨ Almost at once, Hermione was squeezed out of her breath when Harry and Ron both wrapped her in a bear hug. Then the Weasley family descended upon them and the ten figures fell onto the ground in a series of ¡§Ouch!¡¨, ¡§Hey!¡¨, and ¡§Shove off, you git!¡¨

Mr. and Mrs. Granger arrived just in time to pull them up and laugh their heads off.

They all went into Gringott¡¦s, still laughing and greeting each other. They were not aware of a certain tall, pale-haired man staring at them while leaning on a door frame. He pulled back his sleeve, exposing a green and silver bracelet. Holding the bracelet to his lips, he muttered,

¡§Nott, Malfoy here. Targets had just gone into Gringott¡¦s. Start moving now.¡¨

Then he turned and strode towards Kockturn Alley purposely.

¡§Ay, c¡¦mon.¡¨ said Ron as he dragged the whole procession of the Weasleys, Grangers and Harry in the direction of the Quidditch Supplies. They¡¦d all finished their school shopping and were poking around in the shops, buying other things they need.

¡§Hey! This is the Lightningbolt!¡¨ cried Charlie. 

¡§Yeah! I heard that this was the newest broom in the market, the best one too!¡¨ George exclaimed.

¡§It¡¦s amazing¡K¡¨ Bill said with a dreamy look plastered on his face.

Hermione squeezed herself between the Weasley twins and pressed herself on the glass. The Lightningbolt was sleek and shiny with a completely black body. It was clashing around, desperately trying to free itself from the iron clasps that were holding onto it. Wow.Hermione was lost in thought. If only she could fly on it. 

The owner of the shop noticed the crowd of people outside his shop and came out to advertise.

¡§Hello there! Welcome to Quidditch Supplies! I notice that you are looking at the newest broom on the market, dear sirs and ladies! This is the Lightningbolt! Last and only broom created by the late Doctor Caitlin. As I said, this is the only Lightningbolt in the world, it¡¦s extremely powerful! The fact is that it¡¦s like a wand.¡¨

¡§What do you mean?¡¨ Ron asked.

¡§It chooses its own master and would do anything for him. Do you want to try?¡¨ So the whole group strutted into the shop one by one, and they took turns to stand in front of the broom. Harry and all the Weasleys tried, but the conclusion was that they were not the Master of the Broom after all. Harry gazed at the squirming broom with a glazed expression.

Hermione was feeling very sorry for her best friend. Well, Harry was one of the BEST flyers in the world after all.

¡§Oh, don¡¦t be so disappointed, Harry. It does not mean that you are not a good flyer. Maybe the Firebolt suits you better. You never know¡K¡¨

At these words, the Lightningbolt suddenly became still, then it dodged the shopkeeper¡¦s hands and zoomed towards Hermione. Everybody gasped. The black broom stopped right in front of Hermione and stood there. It was a very funny sight indeed. The black handsome broom was standing (or you can say that it stood its twigs on the floor) in front of the horror-struck girl. Suddenly, with a shuffling sound and an exited squeal, the Lightningbolt jumped right into Hermione as if it was hugging her. 

¡§Oh my God! My God! It had chosen you to be its mistress, mi¡¦lady!¡¨ The shopkeeper was much exited.

As soon as he said that, the top section of the broom bent a few times, as if it¡¦s nodding. Everybody was too stunned to react.

¡§Hermie?¡¨ Harry broke the silence and raked his hair with his hand.

¡§Ummm¡KI¡K¡¨ Hermione was speechless. The shopkeeper snatched the broom back and forced it into a narrow black box that seemed to be made out of shiny black ebony.

¡§May I ask what your name is?¡¨ the shopkeeper asked. 

¡§It¡¦s Hermione Laetitia Granger.¡¨ Hermione said. An instant later, silver lettering appeared on the box bearing her name. The shopkeeper handed the quivering box to Hermione. As soon as she touched it, everybody heard the squeak again and the box stopped shaking.

¡§How much should I pay you?¡¨ Hermione licked her lips nervously. ¡§I may not be able to afford it¡Xit¡¦s the only Lightningbolt on Earth after all.¡¨

¡§Don¡¦t worry, Miss Granger. The late Doctor Caitlin had instructed that it is to be, by all means, given to the rightful heiress.¡¨

¡§Okay, if you say so.¡¨ She muttered a few chosen words and turned the long, narrow box to a thumbnail-sized one. She placed it in her bag carefully with the other thumbnailed school things. Then they went out of the shop.

¡§Hey!¡¨ Charlie cried. ¡§Why don¡¦t we split up? We boys will go to Zonko¡¦s while you girls go to buy you new clothes.¡¨

¡§What a great idea!¡¨ Mrs. Weasley said. ¡§Arthur, why don¡¦t we bring Mr. and Mrs. Granger for a drink?¡¨

¡§Alright, then we can meet up at the Leaky Cauldron in an hour.¡¨ Mr. Weasley said.

So they departed. The boys strode down the street to the direction of Zonko¡¦s and the girls headed to the direction of Gladrags.

¡§You know what?¡¨ Ginny quipped up, smiling at her best friend. ¡§It¡¦s so good to have Dad being Minister of Magic now. We don¡¦t need to worry about how much we spend.¡¨

¡§Yeah,¡¨ said Hermione. ¡§I bet that the whole magical community is thankful for that too. But it¡¦s a real surprise that Fudge is a Death Eater.¡¨

¡§Right.¡¨ Ginny¡¦s voice was muffled as she was plunging into a dress rack. ¡§Ah, how about this?¡¨ She pulled a dress from the rack and held it upon her body. It was a deep purple gown decorated with golden stars at the sleeves.

¡§Wow, it¡¦s beautiful, Gin, you look great in it.¡¨

¡§Thanks, I suppose that I¡¦ll buy this one then. Hey, why don¡¦t you look around? Maybe you¡¦ll find something nice.¡¨

¡§Alright.¡¨ Hermione flipped around the dresses on the racks. Hmmm¡K why don¡¦t I try something new?suddenly, she caught sight of some strange material. She pulled out the dress and gasped. 

It was an antique. The dress was in a deep red colour, and had a close-fitting silhouette. The long sleeves, the front and edges were a black spider-web design. Hermione held it upon her body and looked into a nearby mirror. Now this is something that I call a real dress. She walked to the cashier and paid for it. To her surprise, it only cost a couple of galleons. 

¡§This dress had been staying in the store for many years now, so I¡¦m selling it to you cheap.¡¨ The saleswoman explained. ¡§So there you go.¡¨

¡§Thanks!¡¨ said Hermione.

¡§Hey, Hermie!¡¨ It was Harry, coming to find her. ¡§It¡¦s almost time now, and the others are all waiting for you.¡¨

¡§What about Gin?¡¨ Hermione asked as Harry took her bags.

¡§She¡¦s with the others. They¡¦re going for ice-cream.¡¨

¡§Okay.¡¨ They strode down the street, walking closely together. Suddenly, something caught her eye. It was a dusty little shop, with neither shop signs nor display windows. But one peek told her that there are many books inside.

¡§Ummm, Harry?¡¨

¡§Yes?¡¨

¡§Would you mind going to the others first? I¡¦ve forgotten that I had to buy something pretty important.¡¨

¡§Okay, be quick though.¡¨ Harry shifted Hermione¡¦s bag onto his shoulders and turned, walking to the direction of the ice-cream parlor that was beside the Leaky Cauldron.

Hermione approached the shop and stepped in cautiously.

The shop was small, with old wooden bookcases lining the walls and a glass display counter in the middle. Hermione walked over to the bookcases and poked around. Suddenly, a small blue hard-cover caught her attention. She pulled it out. 

It was roughly to the size of her palm and with the silver letters ¡§The Diary of Rowena Ravenclaw¡¨ initiated upon the cover. Hermione flipped open the book and turned to the first page. As soon as she did so, words appeared as if an invisible hand was writing on it.

_Greetings, Hermione Laetitia Granger. _

Hermione gasped. Could the book be talking to me? What the hell is happening? 

¡§Ah, so the Heiress is here.¡¨ A male voice made Hermione started and turned. 

There was a pale young man standing in a dark corner of the shop. With one stride, he stepped up beside Hermione and peered into the page. Some more writing appeared. 

_Lestat, long time no see, pal. But we don¡¦t have time to talk now. Give Hermione the things and get her out of here NOW! Something is not right. I can feel it._

Hermione stared at Lestat and backed away.

¡§Who are you? I mean, what are you?¡¨ She had a prickling feeling that whoever, or whatever standing next to her was anything but human.

¡§No time for that now.¡¨ Lestat growled. ¡§Take this!¡¨ He reached into the glass case and retreated a small black jewellery box from it. He handed it to her. 

¡§Bring this with you,¡¨ he instructed. ¡§And don¡¦t open this until I tell you to do so. I¡¦ll come and answer your questions later.¡¨

Hermione stood there, box and book in hand. He stared at him as if he was nuts.

¡§GET OUT OF HERE NOW!¡¨ he roared. Hermione squealed and backed out of the shop, and then she sprinted towards the Leaky Cauldron. Gasping, she looked back, and the blank wall told her that the mysterious shop had disappeared.

She ran down the street and saw the Weasleys, her parents, and Harry were all holding ice-cream cones, and laughing their heads off when Percy turned into a large canary.

¡§Hey, Hermie!¡¨ Harry laughed and handed a cone to the still gasping Hermione. ¡§Gin had already flooed back to the Burrow with our things¡K¡¨

Before Harry could finish his sentence, there were screams from down the street. Hermione looked up in alarm and let out a strangle sort of scream.

Death Eaters.

A herd of Death Eaters were swooping towards them on Firebolts, with wands raised. Within seconds, the Weasleys were Stunned, except for Hermione, her parents, Harry, and Mr. Weasley. Harry grabbed his wand and aimed a ¡§STUPEFY!¡¨ at the group of the black-cloaked figures. But they scattered and dodged it with ease, and Harry joined the ones on the ground in no time.

Screaming and shouting, people rushed into Gringott¡¦s to take shelter, therefore only Mr. Weasley, Hermione and her parents were left standing against the Death Eaters.

Mr. Weasley stunned two Death Eaters, but he too was down onto the ground when Death Eaters Aparrated round them. Hermione¡¦s parents were terrified. Two Death Eaters grabbed them and tied them onto two Firebolts with conjured ropes. Turning, Hermione saw that her parents were captured. 

¡§Mum! Dad!¡¨ she screamed. A Death Eater pinned her onto the ground and tried to tie her up also, but Hermione¡¦s anger was deadly. Catching snatches of memories of gymnastics she had learned all her life, she slammed her knee into the opponent¡¦s face, making his nose broken.

Seeing that her parents were Stunned already, she snarled and twisted like a wild cat, meanwhile turning a summersault to avoid a hex. She punched, kicked and even threw cures back to the men in black. Within moments, quite a few Death Eaters were on the ground, either Stunned, Stupefied, hurt, or unconscious. Clearly the Death Eaters underestimated her, and they were very surprised as she attacked. 

Six Death Eaters mounted their brooms and kicked off, bringing Hermione¡¦s parents with them. 

A second later, Aurorers appeared on the scene and simply stared at Hermione, who was breaking a Death Eater apart with a series of deadly kicking between his legs.

Mad-eye Moody was there also, gazing admiringly at the furious girl. 

¡§Moody!¡¨ Hermione shouted. ¡§Tie them up! And don¡¦t let them escape!¡¨ Then looking up at the remaining six Death Eaters who was fleeing towards Knockturn Alley, she snarled, ¡§Oh no you DON¡¦T!¡¨ She slipped the Lightningbolt out, enlarged it to its original size, and jumped onto it. Hermione didn¡¦t need to say twice, and the black broom had already zoomed like a bullet towards the Death Eaters. Aiming her wand at them, she shouted ¡§AVADA KEDAVRA!!!¡¨ a few times until only three of them were left.

They must have noticed that the Firebolts were no match for the Lightningbolt, because one of them pulled out a bracelet and mentioned for the other two to touch it

Oh no! It¡¦s a Portkey! Hermione panicked. ¡§MUM! DAD!¡¨ But they were gone.

The Lightningbolt seemed to sense her feelings and lowered immediately. Sobbing, Hermione slipped off the whimpering broomstick and stumbled onto the ground, beating it with her fists until blood seeped out. 

¡§Hermione! What happened!?¡¨ It was Harry. He ran to Hermione and wrapped her in a hug.

¡§Mum¡K Dad¡K Portkey¡K three of them¡K¡¨was all she could manage between her sobs.

¡§Harry, what is it?¡¨ Moody ran towards them.

¡§The three remaining Death Eaters kidnapped Hermione¡¦s parents, and then disappeared with a Portkey.¡¨ Nodding, Moody strode over to the three bodies and started to tie them up. Hermione saw that and stopped him,

¡§You don¡¦t need to do that, Mad-eye. I killed them.¡¨

¡§You killed them?¡¨

¡§Yeah, with the killing curse.¡¨

Mad-eye Moody stared at her, with his magic eyeball dancing crazily in his socket. Then he levitated the bodies, and mentioned Harry to lead Hermione back to the Leaky Cauldron, where the Weasleys had been woken up and was being questioned by Aurors. Tom, the landlord of Leaky Cauldron, was waving his arms around frantically, while explaining how Hermione the Hogwarts student fought off the Death Eaters by her own.

¡§¡K then she swung her fist up to that git¡¦s face and he was down, spluttering blood and half-dead¡K¡¨

On the other side of the area, Aurors were lining up the unconscious Death Eaters.

¡§You are all going back to the Ministry,¡¨ Moody instructed. ¡§Arthur needs to owl Dumbledore right away¡K¡¨

Hermione sank down on the sidewalk with the squeaking Lightningbolt making soothing gestures to calm her. Clutching the extinquisive jewellery box and the diary that Lestat gave her, she started crying her heart out. 

~End chapter~

  



	4. Chapter 2

Okay, guys. Here is the second chapter! Hope you like it.

Chapter 2

Hermione nodded thanks and received the hot chocolate gratefully. Sipping the scalding, sweet drink, she felt the almost-familiar warmth seeping down her throat. 

All of a sudden, the door bursted open, and in ran a very worried Ginny Weasley.

¡§Hermie! Oh, are you alright?! You could have been killed!¡¨ Ginny grabbed her best friend and sobbed, causing Hermione to spill her scalding drink on her lap.

¡§Ahhhhhhhh!¡¨ Hermione screamed and Ginny jumped up, alarmed. Harry soothed Hermione and cured her leg with a wave of his wand.

They were sitting in the Minister¡¦s office, located at the top-most floor of the Ministry Building. The Weasleys clustered themselves around the office, leaving the most comfortable sofa for Hermione.

The door opened again, and this time, the Minister himself entered, followed by Mad-eye Moody, Dumbledore and a big, black dog.

¡§Professor Dumbledore!¡¨ Harry cried. ¡§Sirius!¡¨

The black dog trotted to Harry and ¡§pop¡¨, it became Sirius Black, Harry¡¦s godfather. Sirius had been cleared right after Mr. Weasley had overthrown the former Minister. He had been working for Dumbledore and preferred to stay in his dog shape as much as possible. He said that it made him a less likely target for Wormtail, who had been trying to murder him several times already.

Sirius rushed over to give Hermione a big hug. ¡§I¡¦m feel so sorry for your parents¡X¡§he started.

¡§Please, Sirius.¡¨ Hermione said firmly. ¡§You know I¡¦m made of stronger stuff. You have known me for years now.¡¨

Dumbledore chuckled a bit at that.

¡§I fetched Dumbledore from Hogwarts as soon as I arrived.¡¨ Moody was saying, ¡§And we are going to question the Death Eaters now. Dumbledore thought Miss Granger and Mr. Potter would like to come.¡¨

Hermione stood up and followed Harry out of the office. Moody led through shifting corridors, down moving staircases, until they arrived at the Aurors section of the building. They moved through hundreds of massive offices, with many uniformed people bowing their heads at them. They walked down much more moving staircases, and finally to the damp and dim dungeons, where the Death Eaters were temporarily imprisoned, still tied up and masked, locked in a big cell. Moody put his hand on the lock and it sprang open, and they entered in single file.

Moody pulled a Death Eater to his feet roughly and growled, ¡§Name?¡¨ The man just spat on his face and smirked.

¡§You think we¡¦re going to tell you so easily?¡¨

¡§Filth.¡¨ Moody muttered as he moved to remove the white mask from his face.

¡§Professor Moody, calm down.¡¨ It was Hermione. ¡§Put him down. I¡¦ll deal with them.¡¨ Moody just stared at her with a bemused look.

¡§Well, I did knock him down, didn¡¦t I? Therefore I should be the one to question them.¡¨ Hermione said sweetly. Moody looked a bit doubtful at that, but he dropped the Death Eater to the ground and backed away, while exchanging strange looks with Mr. Weasley, Harry and Sirius. But Dumbledore kept silent and looked on.

Hermione knelt down and helped the Death Eater to a more comfortable sitting position.

¡§So tell me.¡¨ She smiled sweetly and smiled. ¡§Who are you?¡¨

¡§Do you think I will be stupid enough to reveal my identity, mi¡¦lady?¡¨ he smiled. 

¡§So you want to play it rough, don¡¦t you?¡¨ she placed a single finger on the man¡¦s chest and traced upwards towards his jawline and stopped at the catch of the Death Eater mask just below his earlobe.

¡§Listen to me, Miss Granger.¡¨ The man spoke. ¡§You are wasting your time with those Mudblood-lovers over there. The Dark lord knows of your talent. Why do you have to throw away the chance of joining him, as you are not of their class?¡¨

¡§Tell me who you are.¡¨ Hermione didn¡¦t answer his question.

¡§No way, love. Now, listen to me for a moment¡X¡§

Hermione clearly had enough. She yanked away the mask so suddenly that the man winced in pain.

¡§Crucio!¡¨ Hermione pulled out her wand and shouted. The man writhed and screamed.

¡§Hermie! No!¡¨ Harry shouted and tried to run towards her, but without looking at her best friend, Hermione pulled up her other hand, and placed it in mid-air, with her palm facing towards Harry. At this instant, Harry bumped right into an invisible barrier, smashing his glasses and forming a purple bump right on his lightning scar. Dumbledore swept to Harry¡¦s side and helped him up, while healing his forehead and mending his glasses with a wave of his wand. Harry started to speak, but Dumbledore stopped him and pointed to Hermione, gesturing him to pay attention to the brown-haired girl.

Hermione was indeed doing a very good job. She moved among the Death Eaters, forcing out their identities with the Cruciutus spell, and Moody wrote their names down on a piece of conjured parchment as soon as their names came out of their mouths. It turned out that most of them were low-rank Death Eaters and quite a few of them were working at the Ministry.

Finally, Hermione moved to the last Death Eater, who was shaking and sputtering in fear. One look at his body could tell who she had captured. Sirius growled.

¡§Hello, Scabbers, long time no see,¡¨ Hermione said. ¡§Don¡¦t worry; I¡¦m not going to kill you. It¡¦s just a little bit of torture that your master loves, only worse.¡¨ She turned to the spectators and said, ¡§Who wants to have revenge? If you do, just hand me your wand.¡¨ Harry and Sirius handed theirs over eagerly. Turning back to Wormtail, she stuck the two wands into each of his ears and shouted ¡§CROCIO!!!!!¡¨

if seeing the other death Eaters being tortured was horrible, this was terrifying. Scabbers, Wormtail, or Peter Pettigrew spasmed inhumanly as he shrieked. At last, Hermione pulled out the wands , and the plump man crashed, bleeding-eared and half-dead, onto the floor.

Hermione staggered backwards and fainted away right into Harry¡¦s arms. Moody was still staring at Hermione in awe.

They left, and Harry carried her all the way up to the top floor. When they arrived back in the office, Harry placed her on the sofa again.

¡§Everybody, I think that you know very well that you are not to spill one word about today¡¦s events.¡¨ Dumbledore announced. ¡§Then why don¡¦t you all troop down to the café to have a drink or two while Miss Granger, Alastor, Arthur and me stay here to have a little discussion.

The others did as they were told. Mr. Weasley sealed the door, and made the room soundproof before conjuring coffees for everybody and made them settled comfortably around his desk.

¡§So, Hermione, that was quite a surprising performance down in the cells.¡¨ Mr. Weasley remarked.

¡§Ahem,¡¨ Dumbledore cleared his throat dramatically. ¡§Arthur, I do not believe that we are going to waste our time discussing Miss Granger¡¦s altitude, instead, we must thank Miss Granger heartily because we are going to do it anyway, and she helped us to save quite a lot of time.¡¨ His eyes twinkled. ¡§So why don¡¦t we start talking about the attack now?¡¨

¡§I apologize, Albus.¡¨ Mr. Weasley looked a bit embarrassed ¡§So, Alastor, can you brief us on the whole thing?¡¨

¡§Certainly, Minister.¡¨ Moody said. ¡§The attack happened at about six fifty-five. Five Death Eaters Aparrated in Knockturn alley and flew to Diagon Alley on Firebolts. They Stunned your family, Minister¡K¡¨He continued to drone on and on about the attack.

Suddenly, Hermione frowned. Fishy¡K

Moody finished speaking and a heavy silence downed on them. It was Hermione who broke the ice.

¡§There is something nagging at the back of my mind ever since my parents were captured, and until now do I realize¡X¡§ She stopped. Do I really want to say it?

¡§Realize what?¡¨ Moody asked.

¡§From what I read about the past attacks, Voldemort was known to kill as many as possible during his famous raids. But this time, it seems as if old Voldie changed his unique style. And this time, Harry Potter, whom he wanted to kill for a long time, was not his target.¡¨

¡§So what are you suggesting?¡¨ Mr. Weasley stared at her in awe.

¡§It¡¦s obvious, isn¡¦t it? Voldemort¡¦s targets are my parents!¡¨

This time, the silence was so heavy that one could even hear a pin falling in the room.

¡§But it didn¡¦t make sense, Hermione. Your parents were muggles, right?¡X¡§ Hermione didn¡¦t answer. ¡§¡Xthen there are no special reasons on why they are Voldemort¡¦s targets!¡¨ Mr. Weasley exclaimed.

¡§This is the nearest conclusion I can think about.¡¨ Hermione shrugged. ¡§If Voldie just wanted muggles, then why doesn¡¦t he just send two Death Eaters onto the London main street? It¡¦s much, much easier then tracking MY parents down in Diagon Alley, or¡K¡¨

¡§What?¡¨ Moody growled impatiently with his quill placing above the parchment he was writing on.

¡§Oh, nothing.¡¨

¡§I do think that it is something, Miss Granger.¡¨

¡§Oh, alright. But you may think that I¡¦m nuts.¡¨ Hermione sighed. ¡§Maybe he is serving a master of his own.¡¨

¡§That¡¦s impossible!¡¨ Mr. Weasley sprang up from his chair as if his butt had caught fire. ¡§How can HE be serving another person? He¡¦s one of the most powerful wizards in the world!¡¨

¡§That¡¦s very true, ¡§ Dumbledore agreed, ¡§but I think that Miss Granger¡¦s logic and ideas cannot e overlooked.¡¨

¡§Right, ¡§ snarled Moody as he scribbled down Hermione¡¦s suggestion.

¡§Now, no one must tell a SOUL of what had been discussed here, is that understood?¡¨ r. Weasley aid. ¡§Especially you, Hermione. I know Harry and Ron will be plastering you with questions, so be careful. So why don¡¦t we all go home and take a nap to relax?¡¨

Nodding, they all got to their feet. Suddenly, the door shook rather violently and shouted something unrecognizable to someone outside the door. Mr. Weasley quickly pulled it open to reveal a panting Severus Snape. He turned to Dumbledore and spoke, ¡§Headmaster, I saw the Grangers, they¡¦re still pretty alive, in good health and all. They¡¦re just unconscious. Far from death¡K¡¨

¡§Thank you, Severus. Is there anything more?¡¨

¡§Voldemort was furious when Malfoy turned up with two other Death Eaters and the Grangers. When he knew that twenty- something of them were taken down by a seventeen-year-old girl, he flew into such a fit of rage that he started greeting everyone with ¡¥Crucios¡¦.¡¨

¡§Thanks very mush, Professor Snape.¡¨ Hermione said softly. ¡§I caught them and greeted them with ¡¥Crucios¡¦ also,¡¨ Hermione beamed. ¡§So I gathered that they don¡¦t like me very much. But I also hate them when they tried to persuade me to join Voldie.¡¨

Snape gulped and turned into a lovely shade of green.

¡§Professor Dumbledore, I believe that we can leave now, right? Because I am starting to develop a rather nasty headache. ¡§

¡§Go on,¡¨ said Dumbledore, ¡§and I will owl you personally on how the investigation is going on.¡¨

¡§Thanks.¡¨ With that, she followed Mr. Weasley out.

¡§One more thing, Miss Granger.¡¨ said Moody. ¡§Do you know the art of Martial Arts?¡¨

¡§No, I don¡¦t.¡¨ Hermione replied. ¡§But I know ballet and gymnastics pretty well.¡¨

Like it? Any suggestions (esp. about pairings), please email me at AngelaWong844@hotmail.com .


	5. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

¡§Awww, you make me sick, George.¡¨ Hermione moaned one day at lunch. George Weasley was trying to eat his spaghetti like a dog by burying his face

in the overflowing bowl.

¡§Wa di yaws ay?¡¨ George looked up. It was disgusting. Bits of spaghetti was stuck in his mouth and nostrils, and his face was orange from the sauce

¡§I said you make me sick.¡¨

¡§Oh, Hermione. We¡¦re just trying to cheer you up.¡¨ said Fred cheerfully, and he plunged his face into his bowl.

¡§Definitely,¡¨ grinned Charlie. He followed suit.

¡§Count me in,¡¨ said Bill, and he too put his head into his bowl.

¡§Hey, me too.¡¨ Ron laughed, and made a great show of holding his breath and diving into his spaghetti.

¡§You are all acting very childish, you know.¡¨ Percy complained.

¡§C¡¦mon, Perce, don¡¦t be a spoilsport!¡¨ said Bill. Without looking up, he put his hand on Percy¡¦s head and forced it into his bowl.

¡§So much for brothers,¡¨ Ginny muttered.

¡§WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU BOYS ARE DOING!?¡¨ It was Mrs. Weasley. The Weasley boys all looked up with orange faces.

¡§We are just trying to cheer Hermione up, Mum.¡¨ said George innocently.

¡§Yeah, she really needs some cheering up, Mum.¡¨ Fred chimed in.

¡§THEN YIU THINK OF ANOTHER WAY OF CHEERING HER UP, INSTEAD OF PUTTING YOUR STUPID FACES INTO YOUR LUNCH!¡¨

¡§Okay, Mum,¡¨ said Bill nervously. ¡§Cool down!¡¨

¡§I THOUGHT YOU AND CHARLIE ARE BIG ENOUGH TO ACT YOUR AGE! I WAS WRONG THEN! DE-GOMNE THE GARDEN AS YOUR PUNISHMENT!¡¨

Hermione, Harry and Ginny finished their lunch in silence and sneaked out of the kitchen, sniggering all the way. Then Harry came up with a suggestion of having a broom-flying contest. The other two girls agreed and went to get their brooms; they were outside in no time.

¡§Okay, this is what we have to do,¡¨ Ginny instructed. ¡§We can do laps around the house and keep my git brothers company.¡¨ They took out their brooms and mounted them. Hermione had a little trouble because the Lightningbolt kept squeaking and rocketing around in excitement.

¡§Okay, ten laps around the house, that include dodging the gnomes.¡¨ Harry said. ¡§After that, stop and we¡¦ll see who is the fastest. Ready?¡¨ The girls nodded. ¡§Three¡Ktwo¡Kone¡KGO!¡¨ and they were off.

Firebolts were certainly excellent flying-brooms, but the Lightningbolt was absolutely perfect. When Harry and Ginny were still doing the second lap, Hermione was already doing her sixth lap. The Weasley boys had already forgotten their punishment, even Crookshanks and the gnomes were gazing up at the blur in the air that was Hermione flying.

¡§Wow, can I have a try?¡¨ Ron asked immediately as Hermione jumped gracefully onto the ground. 

¡§Go on,¡¨ Hermione said. Ron tried to climb onto the rocketing broom, but the Lightningbolt gave a loud angry squeak and flung the red-head down onto the ground.

Fred sniggered. ¡§Ronniekins, the Lightningbolt seems to let good fliers to use it only. Move over and let me try.¡¨ Ron inched from the squealing broomstick. Fred ceased it harshly and jumped onto it. But before his buttocks could touch it, the Lightningbolt squirmed out of his hands and flew behind Hermione, squeaking in anger.

¡§This is strange,¡¨ said Charlie thoughtfully. ¡§The Lightningbolt looked as if it had a mind of his own. Here, lemme try.¡¨ Hermione moved out of his way and let him approached the shaking broom slowly. His hand shot out and grasped the broom. But before he could do anything more, the Lightningbolt twisted out of his hand, flew behind him and whacked him on the buttocks. Charlie was immediately lying facedown in the dirt. Bending its ¡§head¡¨ rapidly and squeaking loudly, the broom was laughing at Charlie. Hermione strode over to the broom and said sternly, 

¡§That¡¦s not funny, Squeak!¡¨ She was very much like Mrs. Weasley when she did that. Squeak stopped laughing and hung its ¡§head¡¨ as if it was ashamed. ¡§One more time of that and you are going to sweep rubbish for the rest of your life, understand?¡¨ Squeak nodded a few times and stayed silent.

¡§Hermione, it understands you!¡¨ Bill exclaimed.

¡§So you decided to name him Squeak?¡¨ George sniggered.

¡§I figured that the maker of the Lightningbolt must have out a living-charm on Squeak.¡¨

¡§A living-charm?¡¨ Fred rubbed his chins thoughtfully. ¡§Sounds appealing.¡¨

¡§Do you know it?¡¨ Ginny asked excitedly.

¡§Of course.¡¨ Hermione said. ¡§Want me to show you? It¡¦s pretty easy.¡¨ It was a few minutes before all the boys got their Firebolts out, then Hermione taught them the incantation.

¡§While you are saying it, make sure that you twirl your wand fully round your broom. After that, the broom will only listen to the person who cast the charm. No one else will be able to get near it ever again, so you don¡¦t need to worry about the Slytherins sabotaging your brooms before your Quidditch game.¡¨

In a short period of time, all the Firebolts were clustering around Squeak, which was seemingly agreed as the leader of the group.

¡§Mine is Gred.¡¨ said Fred proudly.

¡§And mine is Forge.¡¨ George said.

In no time at all, the brooms were de-gnoming the garden, whacking the poor gnomes this way and that. Hermione was dozing on the grass when suddenly a large barn owl flew to her side and hooted loudly. Hermione looked up and found herself staring up into the eyes of a school owl

¡§What is it, Hermie?¡¨ Ron asked as he yawned in a very uncivilized way.

¡§Ewwwwwwww,¡¨ Hermione breathed.

¡§What¡¦s wrong?¡¨ Harry asked.

¡§What¡¦s wrong? What¡¦s wrong! I¡¦M HEAD GIRL! THAT¡¦S WHAT¡¦S WRONG!¡¨

¡§Congratulations, Hermione Granger!¡¨ Percy sprang up and hugged her. ¡§I just knew that you will take up my mantle!¡¨

¡§Shove off, Perce.¡¨ Charlie teased. ¡§At least she does not sing in the shower.¡¨

¡§Are you saying that I sing in my showers?¡¨

¡§Yeah, off-key.¡¨ Ron grinned. 

¡§Do not!¡¨

¡§We¡¦ll see,¡¨ Ginny said mischievously. ¡§Anyway, congrats, Hermie. And it proves that, Gryffindor, again, wins! GRYFFINDOR FOREVER!¡¨

¡§GRIFFINDOR FOREVER!¡¨

End of chapter

Please review! Thankyou! 


	6. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

¡§Harry!¡¨ called a voice. ¡§Wake up! We are going to leave in twenty minutes!¡¨ Harry grunted. How can it be morning already? Groaning, he pulled up his covers and tried to sleep again. He was so tired!

¡§Harry, if you are not going to wake up, then I¡¦ll have to make you.¡¨ Harry ignored the voice. Suddenly, the bed swayed a little as if somebody had jump onto it. Go away. Harry groaned inwardly. The person leaned down and delivered a small kiss on his cheek.

Harry¡¦s eyes sprang open and saw a very beautiful Hermione gazing at him with a little smile dancing across her face.

¡§Hey, how come I didn¡¦t get one?¡¨ Ron complained from his bed. ¡§It¡¦s not fair!¡¨

¡§You want one? Fine.¡¨ Hermione frowned. ¡§Crookshanks! CROOKSHANKS! CAN YOU COME UP HERE AND GIVE MISTER RONALD WEASLEY A MORNING KISS TO WAKE HIM UP PLEASE!?¡¨ There was a very loud ¡§MEOOOOW!¡¨ and all the residents in the Burrow started laughing.

¡§NOOOO!¡¨ cried a very terrifying Ron as he grabbed his clothes and rushed into the bathroom, as another loud purr came from the landing. 

¡§C¡¦mon, up you get, sleepyhead.¡¨ Hermione chuckled. Crookshanks was scratching on the bathroom door, and Ron started panicking (¡§Get that damned cat away from the door! Aaargh!¡¨) ¡§Or do you want me to set Crookshanks on you?¡¨

¡§No, please, no. I¡¦m up.¡¨ Harry scrambled up from the bed hastily and ended up tangling himself in his covers and landed on the floor with a muffled bang and ¡§Ooops!¡¨

It was half an hour later when everybody was finally ready. They loaded themselves in the Ministry cars and arrived at King¡¦s Cross in no time at all.

Five minutes later, they found themselves already loading their trunks into the cargo load.

¡§Hermie, what on earth have you put into your trunk?¡¨ gasped Ron as he and Harry levitated it onto theirs.

¡§Oh, just a few extra books, u know, for¡X¡§

¡§¡Xa bit of light reading.¡¨ Harry finished for her.

Suddenly, Ron frowned.

¡§Who died?¡¨ Hermione joked.

¡§If I¡¦m not mistaken, and if my eyes were not deceiving me, then I think Malfoy is pinning something gold and shiny onto his tie.¡¨

¡§So?¡¨ Harry sounded annoyed at the mention of Malfoy.

¡§Don¡¦t you see?¡¨ Ron said and pointed at Hermione¡¦s head girl badge on her tie.

¡§Oh gosh, ¡§ Hermione started frowning too.

¡§By the way, good job on being head girl, Hermie.¡¨ Ron grinned slyly. ¡§It was a really big shock. Never saw it coming¡X¡§

Hermione shook her head in mock annoyance. ¡§And good job to you, Ron, for being the most sarcastic git ever to grace this school.¡¨

¡§Hey, you guys finished?¡¨ Ginny called to them.

They hurried over to the Weasleys to say goodbye.

¡§Don¡¦t bother saying bye to me, guys,¡¨ Charlie beamed. ¡§You may expect me much sooner.¡¨

¡§And us too.¡¨ the twins chorused.

¡§Why?¡¨ Ron eyed his brothers wearily.

¡§Don¡¦t be like that, Ronniekins.¡¨ Bill clapped him on the back. ¡§I¡¦ll be seeing you around too.¡¨

Ron rolled his eyes and shrugged. ¡§Alright, if you say so.¡¨

¡§C¡¦mon, let¡¦s get going.¡¨ said Hermione. So they said their goodbyes and let Hermione dragged tem onto the train by holding onto their ears. They found an empty compartment near the front of the train. They went on taunting each other and laughing whole-heartedly.

¡§Hey, Hermie, how about changing Crookshank¡¦s fur colors?¡¨ Harry started to slip his hand into his backpack for his wand.

¡§Oh no, you don¡¦t!¡¨ Hermie sprang up from her seat and tried to slap him playfully, but the train gave a sudden lunge and she ended up falling into Harry¡¦s muscular arms.

¡§Whoa!¡¨ laughed Harry. ¡§Watch it, Hermie!¡¨

¡§Hey Granger. I never thought that you and Potter are this close, or are you thinking of buying your way to fame?¡¨ drawled a familiar voice. The three friends turned and saw a smirking Malfoy leaning against the door frame of their compartment.

Immediately, the trio was on their feet, wands in hand.

¡§Put those damn things away. I¡¦m here for Granger.¡¨ 

¡§Why¡¦s that?¡¨ Harry spat out and stepped in front of Hermione, raising his wand slightly higher.

Malfoy heaved a sigh of annoyance. ¡§Look, Potter, she¡¦s needed at the back of the train. Some sort of prefect¡¦s meeting.¡¨

¡§Why would you be coming for me?¡¨ Hermione asked, curiosity getting the better of her. She poked her head around Harry¡¦s arm.

Draco Malfoy looked at her as if she¡¦s nuts. ¡§I¡¦m a prefect too, Granger. Gods! C¡¦mon, they¡¦re waiting for you.¡¨

¡§Now?¡¨ Hermione squealed.

¡§Yes, Granger, NOW!¡¨ Malfoy barked. ¡§Are you coming or not!?¡¨

¡§Fine,¡¨ she muttered. ¡§See you guys later.¡¨ And she slipped through the door.

Draco Malfoy frowned at Hermione strode down the deserted aisle in front of him. He couldn¡¦t help it, but his eyes were stuck to her slender legs.

Ummm... nice legs there, Granger¡K

Hermione had grown slim and petite throughout the years, and no bots could resist her now¡Xwho would be stupid enough to resist the most beautiful girl of the school? Instead of a bushy head, her hair was now extremely long indeed, and the dark-brown waves cascaded elegantly down her back, and the curls at the end of her hair caressed her white calves lovingly. Her pink cheeks, small nose and rosy lips were perfect. The sparkling pools of chocolate brown of the eyes themselves were delicate, and the effect became much more stunning when they were puzzled together with her small face. She was only wearing her Hogwarts uniform. Her sleeves of the grey sweater were rolled up into a careless manner. She had grown quite a bit throughout the summer, so that the dark school dress could just barely covered her nice buttocks.

Malfoy whistled under his breath. One look at her was already more than enough to drive a man straight to his lust. Dammit! Why can¡¦t Slytherin has some girls as hot as her?

Ignoring the bulge between his legs, which had grown a bit painful now, he strutted into the Prefect¡¦s compartment. Professor Flitwick and the other two prefects were already there. 

¡§Ah!¡¨ the professor squeaked as Hermione and Draco walked into the room, ¡§may I introduce our Head girl¡X Miss Hermione Granger of Gryffindor, and our Head Boy¡XMr. Draco Malfoy of Slytherin?¡¨

Hermione stumbled a bit when she heard this. Malfoy? Head Boy? Oh Gods! How can Dumbledore assign a Slytherin to be Head Boy? And not just any Slytherin! Still not believing her ears, she fell into a squishy armchair and choked quietly.

¡§So, lady and gentlemen, why don¡¦t you get to know each other better?¡¨ grinned the little professor in a foolish sort of way. ¡§When you are finished, then you are allowed to enjoy the whole of the trip with your friends.¡¨ He left, and the other two prefects came to Hermione. 

¡§Hi,¡¨ said the taller boy. ¡§Morag MacDougal of Ravenclaw.¡¨

¡§And I¡¦m Thomas Pullman of Hufflepuff.¡¨

They continued talking to each other, but all the time, Malfoy stood at the corner, and the three ignored him gratefully.

At last, they decided that they should go back to their friends. Hermione gulped down the last of her tea and stood up to leave after Morag and Thomas. 

Suddenly, a hand grabbed and she was thrown back into the armchair. Two hands gripped her shoulders bruisingly. She let out a strangled cry as she was pushed further into the chair and a knee was forced between her legs to prevent her from escaping. 

¡§What the hell?¡¨ Was all she could manage through the pain.

It was Malfoy.

He pressed her shoulders more firmly into the wall as he leaned in closer. His eyes looked intently into hers. Then he was so close that his warm breath tickled her neck. 

Where is my wand when I need it!? Darn! Why do I have to left it with Harry and Ron!? She thought frantically.

¡§You can forget about your wand,¡¨ he whispered. ¡§As well as that scarred freak and his sidekick.¡¨

What--? It¡¦s impossible to read minds, right--?

¡§And I think I¡¦m capable of peeping into your mind, Granger.¡¨ 

Draco could see that she was petrified with fear, but he just couldn¡¦t resist delivering a naughty lick on her earlobe.

Hermione gained control over her fear and struggled, vainly, to release herself, which was, of course, rather impossible. He was too strong and large to be affected by it.

¡§Let go!¡¨ she gasped, trying to fight off his hands. 

Draco sighed. If only he had more time, then he would¡K

With one last bruising push, he released her. ¡§One word of this, Granger,¡¨ he warned. ¡§And your parents will be in great trouble, understand?¡¨ With that, he was gone.

Wincing in pain, she slid ungracefully to the floor. Frightened, she found that she could not uttered a sound. She gingerly touched one of her shoulders and recoiled slightly. There were bound to be bruises. Mum? Dad? What¡¦s going on¡K?

______________________________________________________________

Back in the compartment, Ron was sitting on the floor and Harry was pacing up and down in the most agitated temper. 

¡§Stupid Malfoy!¡¨ Harry cursed aloud, obviously displeased. ¡§What the bloody hell would he suddenly play messenger for the professors? I swear, if he does any funny business I¡¦ll hex him so hard that he wouldn¡¦t even be able to put his balls together again! Consequences be damned¡X¡§ There was supposed to be more to come, but the door bursted open and a rather messy Hermione bumped right into Harry.

¡§Oh, gosh! I¡¦m so sorry, Harry, I¡¦ve no idea¡K¡¨

¡§Never mind that. Was there really a prefects¡¦ meeting?¡¨ Harry demanded.

¡§Oh yes,¡¨ Hermione said. ¡§It was a prefects¡¦ meeting alright.¡¨ She lowered her head and didn¡¦t look into Harry¡¦s eyes. ¡§Jesus! Did I miss the Dining Lady? C¡¦mon, Harry, let¡¦s go find her, I¡¦m starving.¡¨

¡§Ur, okay. Ron, you coming?¡¨

¡§Nah, I¡¦d had enough already. You two go on.¡¨ Ron smiled knowingly at Harry.

¡§I want some chocolate.¡¨ Hermione smiled. ¡§Your treat.¡¨ And she pulled him out of the compartment.

A few students grinned to themselves knowingly as they saw the Head Girl pulling the infamous Harry Potter down the train. Hermione was chatting along comfortably, while still hanging onto Harry¡¦s sleeve. As she was shorter and walking much faster, he had to bend down. Sighing, he allowed himself to be pulled along¡Kbut it didn¡¦t seem so bad, since Hermione was the girl clinging onto him after all.

Meanwhile, Draco Malfoy was lounging in an empty compartment nearby.

Granger¡K

Raising his head, he could just glimpse the image of Hermione pulling that Potter along. _His Hermione¡KBitch. He felt the waves of anger raising up from deep within him for no apparent reason. No, wait, maybe it was because he could see the slight blush on Potter¡¦s face as she dragged him along._

****************************************************************************************

That¡¦s it, guys! What do you think? Please review. Thanks!

By the way, go read my other fanfic ¡§Salvation¡¨ . 


	7. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It had been two months since the train accident and it seemed Hermione had forgotten it. That is, since she decided that what Malfoy had just been scaring her when he told her about her parents. Indeed, she didn¡¦t give it much thought, as their last year in Hogwarts proved to be a very busy year, and she plunged herself into her studies. However, studying was the last thing Draco Malfoy had on his mind.

He glared at the brown-haired beauty sitting with Potter and the Weasel at the Gryffindor table. He hated everything about her. He hated how she always beat him at everything¡Xlast year, he had been the second best d=student in the whole grade while she was, always the best, and she didn¡¦t seem to break the trend for six whole years. He hated how her hair had gone from bushy to elegantly wavy. He hated how she always had to be around those two pathetic puppies. He most hated how utterly desirable she was.

He hated how her skin looked so beautifully pure and he had the urge to cover it with bruises and bites. Of course, _his_ bruises, _his_ bites¡K He hated how she looked at Harry and Ron differently than she did him¡K how her eyes lit up when she was talking to them ¡K like now.

And right now, I really hated how she is always laughing with those idiots! sulkily, like a spoiled brat, he slumped into his chair, and accidentally knocked down his dish and goblet from the table in frustration. This caused a loud clang to ring throughout the Great Hall, and more than half of the school turned to look at him. Even Hermione.

Her chocolate eyes met his, and for a moment, he held onto her gaze fiercely. Her eyes were, he observed, flecked with gold. She quickly scowled and turned away, ignoring him. That angered him even more. What right does she have to ignore me!?

Through the years, Draco Malfoy was progressively became one of the most desirable man at Hogwarts. What-blond bangs framing his icy eyes, his pale skin not sickly but pearly. Years of working out and being a Quidditch Seeker had made him muscular. Granted, Potter and Weasley were also very popular with the ladies, but Draco had something they did not. He had power.

With the Malfoy name backing him up, he made Potter¡¦s fortune seemed like a child¡¦s allowance. He also had the bad boy, lone-wolf image. Out the three, he was the only one experienced with women. Potter and his messy black hair and stunning forest-green eyes was more known for his kindness, generosity and fame. Weasley, with his explosive temper, was also popular. He was always the one to crack a sharp remark. Girls found his flaming red hair extremely sexy.

Malfoy still felt the anger seeping through his veins. On the other hand, he just had Crabbe and Goyle, the human-gorillas. All they did is eat, and they were just too thick to string a sentence together¡X

¡§Draco dear, are you listening to me?¡¨ simpered Blaise Zabinni, who was clinging to his left arm. 

¡§No.¡¨ Draco snapped. Although Blaise could be called pretty, she was so simple-minded that all she thought was make-up and boys. Draco knew that Blaise¡¦s father wanted him to fancy his daughter more, but¡Kno way, he was nor going to be forced around like that. Disgusted, he pulled his hand away from her abruptly.

¡§Darling, what are you¡X¡§

¡§I¡¦m not well. I wish to rest now.¡¨ He spat. Without waiting for an answer, he stood up and strode out of the Great Hall.

Another week past, and all the while, the Gryffindor Quidditch team were practicing very hard for the upcoming Quidditch game on Friday, which was Slytherin versus Gryffindor, of course. Harry was the captain of the Gryffindor team by now, Ron was the Keeper, and Ginny was one of the Chasers. If they won this game, then the Cup would be theirs. 

Hermione sighed and looked out of the library window at the Quidditch pitch. Ginny was trying to control an over-enthusiastic and rocketing broom. Ron was scolding his Firebolt. And Harry was discussing the Wronski Feint with Flying Devil, his broom. The other Gryffindor Quidditch team members were also trying to get used to their squeaky broomsticks. Hermione couldn¡¦t help smiling. As soon as practice stared, Harry had requested that the whole team had to cast Living Charms on their broomsticks, so that they could work by memorizing certain positions and tactics so that the team members could concentrate more on fighting off the Slytherins.

Giving a little chuckle as Ron¡¦s broom threw a temper by flyinf around and refusing to stop, Hermione stood up and gather her books. She had been researching on the history on her family, but so far, she was unsuccessful. She would have to go down ad join her friends for dinner somehow. Maybe I¡¦ll come back after dinner. she thought. Turning towards the exit, she saw Draco Malfoy sitting in an armchair in a dark corner, his silver eyes gazing at her. Damn, he¡¦s doing it again!

For the past week, she had felt Malfoy¡¦s eyes on her, watching her every move, studying her, stalking her, like a predator stalking a prey. At first, she tried to ignore it, but lately his stares had grown more intense and disturbing.

¡§Arrrrgh!¡¨ Hermione muttered to herself. ¡§I can never work like this!¡¨ She started marching towards him. He was confident that he wouldn¡¦t try anything¡Xnot in the library with Madame Pince and all those students. She was Head Girl, and any sort of disruption would not go unnoticed. 

¡§Malfoy, may I talk to you for a minute?¡¨ she asked with forced politeness. He set down his book with appeared boredness and looked at her lazily in the eye. Personally, Hermione thought he was not reading at all. Damn¡K I don¡¦t like this when he¡¦s looking at me like this¡Kher instincts told her. She gripped her wand in her pocket a little tighter.

¡§What is it, Granger?¡¨ he asked coolly. 

¡§Erm¡Kwell, I think¡K you¡K should really¡Kuh¡K¡¨ she started, but as soon as she did, she realized that she had no idea how to do it. What am I supposed to say? Stop staring at me? He would instantly turn the bookcases on me. Shit! It seems so pretentious to demand someone to stop staring at you, even though if it¡¦s true.

¡§You really should listen to yourself, Granger. You sound as stupid as Longbottom,¡¨ he drawled. 

Her eyes narrowed. ¡§You don¡¦t have the right to make fun of Neville!¡¨ Her house pride overcame her. Neville was her friend¡Xhow dare this¡Kgit talked about him like that? 

Malfoy¡¦s eyes darkened at that. Hermione gulped, but went on gravely. ¡§And what lacks in skill, he makes up in heart! He¡¦s twice the man as you are, Malfoy!¡¨ At this he stood up sharply, flinging his book on the ground. The library grew quiet, and everybody stared at them.

¡§You think he¡¦s better than me? It sounds like you like the little fool.¡¨ He hissed and stepped closer with cat-like grace. She instinctly stepped back, stumbling a little.

¡§Compared to you¡K¡¨she spat, unable to control herself. ¡§ I likr him ten thousand times more than you!¡¨ With this breathless outburst, she sprinted out of the library.

Still standing Malfoy stared at the direction she had gone, disbelief distantly flashing in his eyes, Then with a curse, he kicked the arm chair with his combat boots and stormed out of the library¡Xhe looked angry enough to kill.

The moment the door slammed close behind him, exited murmurs broke out in the library, and some girls even ran back to their common rooms immediately to gossip on the frightening conflict between the Head Boy and Girl. Rumors spread like wildfire across the school.

Back in her private chamber in the Gryffindor tower, Hermione breathed harshly and placed a hand on her heart, to make sure it was still there. She hated how she was frightened of him. Somehow, she couldn¡¦t quite connect the dangerous young man with the annoying little boy. Sighing, she walked through the deserted corridors and into the Great hall.

As soon as she pushed open the double doors of the Great Hall, everybody (excluding the Slytherins) stopped what they were doing and stared at her, then a loud cheer rose up, and she was congratulated before she was allowed to sit down between Harry and Ron. She glanced at the Slytherin table and saw nothing but glares. Blaise Zabinni even stuck up her middle finger at her. Seeing that Malfoy had not come to dinner, she relaxed and began to calm down.

¡§Hermie, tell us the whole thing,¡¨ Harry pushed a goblet of pumpkin juice towards her. So she told them the whole thing.

¡§But Ginny told us that you kicked him in the balls,¡¨ said Ron seriously.

¡§I did not!¡¨ Ginny shot back. ¡§Take that back!¡¨

¡§Ay, I wish I could.¡¨ Hermione beamed. ¡§But I¡¦m still Head Girl, and I¡¦d prefer to enjoy my privileges more before I¡¦m expelled.¡¨

¡§Uh, Hermione?¡¨ a soft voice called to her from behind. She turned to see Neville behind her.

¡§Oh, hi, Neville.¡¨ she said softly, smiling a little.

¡§I¡KI heard what you said in the library. Thanks a lot.¡¨ he said sincerely. Hermione¡¦s smile widened. ¡§Don¡¦t thank me; I was only speaking the truth. It would be like¡Klike thanking me for saying your robe is black.¡¨

He chuckled a little at that, but his face turned into that of concern. ¡§Will you be okay? Malfoy, after all, is a brat.¡¨

¡§Oh, don¡¦t you worry about me. I¡¦m Head Girl after all, I can take care of myself,¡¨ she said, not feeling as confident as she sounded. Remembering the terrible encounter on the train, she remembered how physically strong Malfoy could be. She brushed her hand on her shoulders. Then she said goodbye to her friends and hurried away to prepare the meeting with the professors she had requested.

It was ten o¡¦clock at night when Dumbledore called the meeting to a close. The past hour had been a terrifying debate between the Potions Master and the Head Girl. All the professors had taken refuge behind the Headmaster when the stubborn professor and the determined girl started waving their wands around, while they shouted to each other like three- year- olds, ten feet apart. Dumbledore had watched them with an amused smile under his beard as they argued.

¡§Professors, you may go.¡¨ said Dumbledore. All of the professors sighed in relief as they trooped out. Hermione started to pack up her things too, but Dumbledore indicated her to stay.

¡§So, Miss Granger. Are you worried about your parents?¡¨ asked Dumbledore kindly.

¡§Most certainly, sir. I love then and I will not let them come to any harm.¡¨

¡§Well, I have some bad news.¡¨

Hermione stayed silent.

¡§Professor Snape had come back from Voldemort¡¦s meeting and found that your parents are not held captive there anymore.¡¨

Hermione just looked blankly at Dumbledore. ¡§So are you trying to say that they might be dead already? Is that what you wanted to tell me?¡¨ Dumbledore nodded.

¡§Then I should let you see this, sir.¡¨ Hermione unclasped her watch from her wrist and handed it to Dumbledore.

¡§I don¡¦t understand, Miss Granger.¡¨ said a bewildered Dumbledore.

¡§Turn to the back, sir.¡¨ 

So the Headmaster turned the watch over and saw yet another watch. But instead of numbers, words such as ¡§HOME¡¨, ¡§DENTAL¡¨, ¡§GRANDMA¡¦S¡¨ could be seen around the brim. In the middle, the shortest hand, having the words ¡§ME¡¨ on it, was currently pointing to ¡§SCHOOL¡¨. The other two hands, Dumbledore noted, with words ¡§MOM¡¨ and ¡§DAD¡¨ engraved on them, were both pointing to ¡§PLACE UNIDENTIFIED¡¨.

¡§The Arachnis charm! How clever!¡¨

¡§I made it last year, when I knew that Voldemort was again raised from the dead. I¡¦m worried about my parents.¡¨

¡§Thank you, Miss Granger.¡¨ Dumbledore handed the watch back to Hermione. ¡§I know I didn¡¦t make a bad choice choosing you as Head Girl.¡¨

Hermione smiled proudly.

¡§As for the issues made tonight, I will announce them at breakfast tomorrow. Now off you go.¡¨

¡§Thank you Professor Dumbledore. Goodnight.¡¨

Dumbledore nodded and Hermione left his office.

¡§Ah, Fawkes, off to bed now¡XI¡¦m mighty tired.¡¨ he blew out the candles and headed to his private quarters.

He too was unaware of a dark figure spying from outside the windows with silver eyes.

That¡¦s it, guys! Like it?

If you want more, then review! Reviews=chapters, get it?

Feel free to email me if you have any ideas on the pairings. Thanks a lot!


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